Pearson Edexcel International GCSE in Physics · 4PH1 · Free · no account needed
Specific Heat Capacity — exam questions
10 original Incandio exam-style questions on Specific Heat Capacity, 27 marks, about 27 minutes of writing. Each one carries the command word, the tariff and the specification statement it assesses, exactly as a paper presents them. This is an original Incandio practice question, written to reflect the structure and demands of the qualification. It is not an official Pearson Edexcel past-paper question.
This is the practice set for Specific Heat Capacity — the lesson that teaches it. Read the lesson first if the idea is new; come here when you want to find out whether you can turn it into marks. Completely free, no account needed to read.
What these questions ask of you
7 command words run through this set, and on Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics each one means something precise. Answering the wrong command is the commonest way a candidate who understands the lesson still loses the mark.
- Which (1 mark)
- one option chosen from the set given
- State what is meant by (1–2 marks)
- the definition
- Calculate (1–5 marks)
- select the equation, substitute, evaluate — and state the unit Misread as: giving a bare number with no equation and no unit
- Determine (1–4 marks)
- a value obtained by combining a reading or gradient with a relationship
- Explain (2–4 marks)
- the physics that causes it, set out as a line of reasoning Misread as: describing the change without giving the physical reason for it
- Describe (2–4 marks)
- developed, linked statements of what happens — including a named direction where one exists
- Suggest (1–3 marks)
- a plausible answer applying taught physics to an unfamiliar arrangement
Assessed on Paper 1 (4PH1/1P) and Paper 2 (4PH1/2P), against AO1, AO2, AO3.
Where these sit in the specification
Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics (4PH1) — statements 5.2 · 5.12 · 5.13 · 5.14. Incandio is aligned to this specification; it is not published by, endorsed by or affiliated with Pearson, and it reproduces none of Pearson's wording.
The 10 questions
Answer them on paper, then open the lesson's exam practice to have them marked. The mark scheme, the accepted and rejected answers and the annotated model answer are in Incandio and are not printed here — an answer beside its question is not practice.
-
A 1.0 kg aluminium block was drilled with two holes, one for an electric heater and one for a thermometer. The heater was run at a measured 50 W and the temperature recorded every two minutes. The block was not insulated.
Table 1 — heating the aluminium block Time / s Temperature / °C 0 19.0 120 25.4 240 31.6 360 37.5 480 43.1 (a)
(2)Determine
Determine the temperature rise of the block over the whole 480 s, using Table 1.
A 1.0 kg aluminium block was drilled with two holes, one for an electric heater and one for a thermometer. The heater was run at a measured 50 W and the temperature recorded every two minutes. The block was not insulated.
Table 1 — heating the aluminium block Time / s Temperature / °C 0 19.0 120 25.4 240 31.6 360 37.5 480 43.1 ............................ °C
(b)
(3)Calculate
Calculate the specific heat capacity of aluminium from the student's results.
A 1.0 kg aluminium block was drilled with two holes, one for an electric heater and one for a thermometer. The heater was run at a measured 50 W and the temperature recorded every two minutes. The block was not insulated.
Table 1 — heating the aluminium block Time / s Temperature / °C 0 19.0 120 25.4 240 31.6 360 37.5 480 43.1 ............................ J/kg °C
(c)
(3)Suggest
Suggest two improvements to the student's method, using Table 1.
A 1.0 kg aluminium block was drilled with two holes, one for an electric heater and one for a thermometer. The heater was run at a measured 50 W and the temperature recorded every two minutes. The block was not insulated.
Table 1 — heating the aluminium block Time / s Temperature / °C 0 19.0 120 25.4 240 31.6 360 37.5 480 43.1 (Total for Question 1 = 8 marks)
-
(1)Which
Which is the correct unit of specific heat capacity?
Unit A J/kg B J/°C C J/kg °C D kg °C/J (Total for Question 2 = 1 mark)
-
(2)State what is meant by
State what is meant by the specific heat capacity of a substance.
(Total for Question 3 = 2 marks)
-
(3)Calculate
Calculate the energy needed to heat 2.0 kg of water from 18 °C to 48 °C. The specific heat capacity of water is 4200 J/kg °C.
energy needed to heat 2 = ............................ J
(Total for Question 4 = 3 marks)
-
(3)Determine
A 0.50 kg metal block absorbs 8100 J and its temperature rises from 21 °C to 57 °C. Determine the specific heat capacity of the metal.
............................ J/kg °C
(Total for Question 5 = 3 marks)
-
(3)Explain
The specific heat capacity of water is about nine times that of iron. Explain what this means in practice.
(Total for Question 6 = 3 marks)
-
(4)Describe
Describe how to find the specific heat capacity of a metal block in the laboratory.
(Total for Question 7 = 4 marks)
-
(3)Explain
Explain why an uninsulated block gives a value for specific heat capacity that is too high rather than too low.
(Total for Question 8 = 3 marks)
Have them marked, then defend the answer
Practice tells you the mark; teaching it back tells you whether you understand it. On Incandio a topic counts as mastered only once you have taught it and defended it.
- Mark these questions — 10 questions, marked on Incandio against the authored scheme, with the mistake you actually made named.
- Teach it — explain Specific Heat Capacity to Ember, an AI pupil who does not have it yet and asks the awkward question.
- Defend it — argue it against Joseph Black over three rounds, marked against descriptors you can read first.
Completely free. No subscriptions, no paywalls, no account needed to start.
Back to the lesson
- Specific Heat Capacity — Why the sand burns your feet and the sea is freezing on the same afternoon.
- All of Incandio Physics · Incandio Exam Practice